Alexandre Desplat and Edgar Ramírez will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award during this year’s GuadaLAjara Film Festival (GLAFF XV), set to take place at the Opening Night Gala on Nov. 6 at the United Theater in Los Angeles.
The Árbol de la Vida Award honors artists whose “work transcends borders and inspires cultural dialogue through cinema, paying tribute to outstanding individuals who have made a lasting impact in film, entertainment, and culture.”
Desplat has composed scores on projects such as “The Imitation Game,” “The King’s Speech,” “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” and “The Shape of Water,” winning the Academy Award for Best Original Score, Golden Globe, and a BAFTA Award in 2018. Desplat composed the score for Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” the festival’s opening night selection, starring Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi and Mia Goth.
Ramírez’s credits include the Academy Award-nominated “Emilia Pérez,” “American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace,” and “Dr. Death.” Ramírez produced and stars in “It Would Be Night in Caracas,” a thriller set during the 2017 protests in Venezuela, which will screen at the GuadaLAJara Film Festival this year.
“The Árbol de la Vida Award is about celebrating artists whose vision and talent bridge cultures and generations,” said Festival Director Ximena Urrutia in a statement. “Alexandre Desplat and Edgar Ramírez each represent excellence in their respective crafts — one through the universal language of music, the other through deeply human storytelling that resonates around the world. It is an honor to celebrate them both at GLAFF’s fifteenth anniversary.”
In addition to the Lifetime Achievement Award, the GuadaLAjara Film Festival in partnership with the Art Directors Guild (ADG, IATSE Local 800) Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee (ADG DEI) will present a Production Designer Award & Mentorship for a narrative short film during GLAFF’s 2025 Shorts Block on Nov. 8 at Vidiots in Los Angeles.
“The Art Directors Guild Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee is proud to reaffirm its commitment to fostering connection and collaboration among diverse filmmakers while celebrating the crafts and cultures that inspire their work,” said Alexander Stamm, Co-Chair of the ADG DEI Committee. “We are honored to expand our partnership with GLAFF through the introduction of this new award, further strengthening our shared mission to inspire, empower, and unite creative communities across the industry.”
The festival is presented by University of Guadalajara Foundation USA, Guadalajara International Film Festival, Grodman Legacy and University of Guadalajara.